Virginia:
James Madison was from Virginia. At this time, Virginia was the largest state in population, and it was filled with aristocrats. Because of the state's geography, which is very flat and rural, the state is filled with farmers and plantations. This is why the social structure is made of extremely wealthy plantation owners and the common farmer. While there were a lot of plantation owners, the majority was made up of the farmers and the slaves that worked on the plantations. The economy, like many other colonies was made up of agriculture, but mainly tobacco as this was the cash crop, and it was grown on the plantations.
Occupation:
James Madison originally went to school at what is presently called Princeton University. He only went to school for two years instead of the typical three, and at the end of the two years when he graduated, he began to study law. However, he did not find that interesting enough to pursue as a career, so he did not know what occupation he was going to have. During the Revolution, he served as a colonel, but could not ever go into battle due to bad health. Instead, he went into Virginia politics. He served on a committee to draft a state constitution and a declaration of rights as a delegate in the Virginia Convention in 1776. He also later served on the Virginia Council of State, which was headed by Thomas Jefferson and Patrick Henry. James Madison married late, and he married Dolley Todd. She was a widow who already had a son, John Todd, from a previous marriage. He was good friends with Thomas Jefferson as well, and that friendship was not lost throughout his life.
Constitutional Convention:
James Madison was at the Constitutional Convention, and he had an extremely important role there. The first major thing he did, was draft the large state plan form of government. This was the plan that opposed the Patterson plan, and it was made so that there was a lower house elected by the people and an upper house that was elected by the lower house. The smaller states did not like this plan because they had a smaller population, so they did not think that their votes would have any impact. Then the Connecticut plan was brought forward and Madison became part of the Great Debate, which really decided all of the specifics in the new constitution. Madison himself, who became known as the father of the constitution, had a very large role in drafting a lot of the document and giving the federal government a good amount of power, but also making many checks and balances so no one branch of government could get too powerful.
States Ratify Constitution:
James Madison was a part of the Virginia's state ratifying convention, and he was obviously voting for the constitution. His state was the tenth state to officially ratify it, and he had a big part in convincing his fellow Virginians to do that.
Arguments:
James Madison was arguing for the ratification of the constitution, which makes sense because he did have a big part in drafting it. He was a federalist, so he wanted a strong federal government but wanted a large amount of checks and balances that made sure that none of the branches of government could get too powerful. The people that could be his references are Alexander Hamilton, John Adams, Ben Franklin, or John Jay. These people could all fill that role because they were all federalists, so they wanted almost the same things as Madison. They all shared the view with wanting a strong central government that would not become tyrannical and too powerful or a federal government that would get walked all over. The foes of James Madison were people like Patrick Henry, Thomas Jefferson, and Mercy Otis Warren because they were all Anti-Federalists. This means that they did not want a strong federal government and instead wanted the power to go to the individual states.
Bibliography:
"James Madison." Presidential Administration Profiles for Students. Ed. Kelle S. Sisung and Gerda-Ann Raffaelle. Detroit: Gale Group, 2003. Gale Student Resources In Context. Web. 14 Sep. 2012.
Onuf, Peter S. "Federalists and Antifederalists." Encyclopedia of American Cultural and Intellectual History. Ed. Mary Kupiec Cayton and Peter W. Williams. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 2001. Gale Student Resources In Context. Web. 14 Sep. 2012.
*The primary source on edmodo that I do not know how to cite
Position: Federalist
Virginia:
James Madison was from Virginia. At this time, Virginia was the largest state in population, and it was filled with aristocrats. Because of the state's geography, which is very flat and rural, the state is filled with farmers and plantations. This is why the social structure is made of extremely wealthy plantation owners and the common farmer. While there were a lot of plantation owners, the majority was made up of the farmers and the slaves that worked on the plantations. The economy, like many other colonies was made up of agriculture, but mainly tobacco as this was the cash crop, and it was grown on the plantations.
Occupation:
James Madison originally went to school at what is presently called Princeton University. He only went to school for two years instead of the typical three, and at the end of the two years when he graduated, he began to study law. However, he did not find that interesting enough to pursue as a career, so he did not know what occupation he was going to have. During the Revolution, he served as a colonel, but could not ever go into battle due to bad health. Instead, he went into Virginia politics. He served on a committee to draft a state constitution and a declaration of rights as a delegate in the Virginia Convention in 1776. He also later served on the Virginia Council of State, which was headed by Thomas Jefferson and Patrick Henry. James Madison married late, and he married Dolley Todd. She was a widow who already had a son, John Todd, from a previous marriage. He was good friends with Thomas Jefferson as well, and that friendship was not lost throughout his life.
Constitutional Convention:
James Madison was at the Constitutional Convention, and he had an extremely important role there. The first major thing he did, was draft the large state plan form of government. This was the plan that opposed the Patterson plan, and it was made so that there was a lower house elected by the people and an upper house that was elected by the lower house. The smaller states did not like this plan because they had a smaller population, so they did not think that their votes would have any impact. Then the Connecticut plan was brought forward and Madison became part of the Great Debate, which really decided all of the specifics in the new constitution. Madison himself, who became known as the father of the constitution, had a very large role in drafting a lot of the document and giving the federal government a good amount of power, but also making many checks and balances so no one branch of government could get too powerful.
States Ratify Constitution:
James Madison was a part of the Virginia's state ratifying convention, and he was obviously voting for the constitution. His state was the tenth state to officially ratify it, and he had a big part in convincing his fellow Virginians to do that.
Arguments:
James Madison was arguing for the ratification of the constitution, which makes sense because he did have a big part in drafting it. He was a federalist, so he wanted a strong federal government but wanted a large amount of checks and balances that made sure that none of the branches of government could get too powerful. The people that could be his references are Alexander Hamilton, John Adams, Ben Franklin, or John Jay. These people could all fill that role because they were all federalists, so they wanted almost the same things as Madison. They all shared the view with wanting a strong central government that would not become tyrannical and too powerful or a federal government that would get walked all over. The foes of James Madison were people like Patrick Henry, Thomas Jefferson, and Mercy Otis Warren because they were all Anti-Federalists. This means that they did not want a strong federal government and instead wanted the power to go to the individual states.
Bibliography:
"James Madison." Presidential Administration Profiles for Students. Ed. Kelle S. Sisung and Gerda-Ann Raffaelle. Detroit: Gale Group, 2003. Gale Student Resources In Context. Web. 14 Sep. 2012.
Onuf, Peter S. "Federalists and Antifederalists." Encyclopedia of American Cultural and Intellectual History. Ed. Mary Kupiec Cayton and Peter W. Williams. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 2001. Gale Student Resources In Context. Web. 14 Sep. 2012.
*The primary source on edmodo that I do not know how to cite